That Vision Thing
Andrew Raff
December 28, 2001
While in foreign affairs, I have no criticisms of the Administration's handling of the situation, the Bush response domestically has been completely reactionary. It is still not clear what Tom Ridge's Homeland Security office does. Airline security is still a joke. The economic stimulus program proposed would benefit big corporations and big Republican contributors at the expense of small businesses and less-than-outrageously-wealthy individuals. Given the opportunity to control the agenda in Washington, the Bush administration has only tried to force through politics as usual, which is sad and uninspiring.
When the American people once again believe that government can play a positive role in their lives and want a more active federal government protecting them, the Bushites still want to limit the activity of the federal government. With a president who actively ignores pop culture, is it really surprising that the administration doesn't get the American people.
In a December 9 column, Thomas Friedman of the New York Times wrote:
This moment cannot just be about moving troops and tracking terrorists. There is a deep hunger in America post-Sept. 11 in many people who feel this is their war in their backyard and they would like to be summoned by the president to do something more than go shopping. If you just look at the amount of money spontaneously donated to victims' families, it's clear that there is a deep reservoir of energy out there that could be channeled to become a real force for American renewal and transformation and it's not being done. One senses that President Bush is intent on stapling his narrow, hard-right Sept. 10 agenda onto the Sept. 12 world, and that is his and our loss.
I highly recommend reading the entire column because it accurately reflects my feelings. Today's young Americans want to create a positive change in the world. We need to personally do something as a reaction to the attacks. In World War II, Americans at home were asked to contribute to the war effort. Today, we're waiting for someone to ask us to contribute. We are waiting for a way to contribute. Being told to "go out and shop" or "go out and travel" or "live life as normal" is not the answer. We can't go on living life the same as before because we recognize the world is not as comfortable as we thought it was before 9/11.
Could we increase understanding and reduce hatred in the world if every American teenager had a correspondence and conversation with an Arab teenager? Probably. With e-mail, instant messenger and internet telephony, this is much cheaper and faster than this would have been even during the Gulf War. When Arab children talk with real live Americans, they may be less likely to turn to dehumanize Americans and turn towards terrorism. We need more understanding between people throughout the world.
Could we improve the environment if more development was made on alternative energy? With solar and wind energy, US dependence on foreign oil could be eliminated and the US would need to expend less international political capital on corrupt oil regimes in the middle east. At this time, Americans would be willing to spend the money to build and develop alternative energy. Even easier-- a national program to simply encourage conservation could probably save more oil than could be recovered by drilling in ANWAR. The cost would be lower, both economic and environmental. How much energy could be saved by turning the heat down two degrees in our houses and wearing a sweater?
What about a national service program? I would volunteer for such a program, especially if I could contribute a few hours a week to it. I'm sure many of my unemployed friends would work full-time on a program, if it had the funding.
As Friedman writes, "I don't toss these ideas out for some patriotic high. There is a critical strategic point here: If we are going to be stomping around the world wiping out terrorist cells from Kabul to Manila, we'd better make sure that we are the best country, and the best global citizens, we can be." The programs that I propose that can be launched with the most wide-spread and effective results from the federal government. The president has an unparalleled opportunity to mobilize Americans and I fear he is going to throw it away because, like his father, he lacks "that vision thing."
